11/8/2022 0 Comments Scott spark 960 29er 2019 reviewI know better than most since I’ve been there myself with my World’s Lightest 29ers a few years back. They’re minimalistic to the extreme and to see paint on one is not something you can expect. Truly super light bikes tend to have a literally raw and stripped down look. It’s not all about numbers – the bike had to look great as well. It won’t matter how light your bike is if you have zero grip or get a flat from looking at your tires the wrong way. The weight had to include pedals, GPS mount, bottle cage and not to forget – proper tires. So that meant a no-cheating and no-shortcuts approach. At least if you want it to actually ride well, and to me there’s no point otherwise. To push it below 8kg, on the other hand, is downright difficult. Going from 10 kg to 9 kg is quite alright, but if you want to have a bike weighing 8.5 kg you really need to put some thought into it. The same goes for complete stock bikes with price tags that would make even your favorite dentist think twice before buying. SCOTT SPARK 960 29ER 2019 REVIEW FULLTo put this number in perspective it’s around 15-20% lighter than most XC full suspension bikes that you see under World Cup riders. In this case it’s about building a 29″ XC/Marathon bike with a total weight below 8 kg – or 17.64 lbs if you prefer the imperial system. Either way, we tend to set a number as a goal and it gives us a little extra drive and meaning to work towards something. Maybe you want your savings account to one day display a certain figure or maybe you really look forward to that 6-pack of (non alcoholic, right?) beer this weekend. Maybe it’s a time you really want to beat on a trail section or maybe you’ve set a goal to one day lift a certain amount of weight at the gym. They don’t need to have any significant meaning to our lives, yet they can serve as significant motivation. Here he shares the details of his latest weight weenie outing – a jawdroppingly lightweight Scott Spark full suspension mountain bike. A stubbier stem would likely improve responsiveness easily and cheaply, though.Gustav “Dangerholm” Gullholm is a fixture of the mountain bike scene, best known for his heavily customised and extremely lightweight builds. In fact, the 60mm stem and shorter fork offset combine to dull the steering to the point I’d prefer a more reactive feel. The 930 isn’t quite as flicky, urgent and feisty as the way lighter Intense Sniper, which was also on test. Climbing traction is excellent with the suspension run wide open, improving to exceptional in the TwinLoc system’s middle setting. Pedalling is dialled, with crank cycles so smooth that the power delivery feels a bit like using an oval chainring (minus the ‘flat spots’ they can bring when stomping hard). Treating it too roughly reveals that the chassis is a bit less stiff and solid though, especially up front. Add this sensation to the extra composure from the slacker 67-degree(ish) head angle and low bottom bracket, and the ride feel gets close to that of many 140mm trail bikes. While tight and supportive-feeling, the Fox Nude shock lets the bike float over bigger bumps so fluidly that it’s easy to wonder if the engineers got their sums wrong and there’s more rear bounce than the claimed 120mm. Get lairy and the rear end absorbs landings and impacts smoothly, so even on off-piste trails the Spark’s got your back. The 930’s geometry and silky suspension deliver the confidence to hit big jumps from the off. Scott Spark 930 ride impressionsĪttaching the trunnion-mounted Fox Nude shock upside-down lets Scott package it extremely cleanly in a down tube ‘cradle’. In fairness, though, the next Spark up addresses these issues and is still a good price. While the 12-speed NX Eagle drivetrain has good range, SRAM’s cranks can flex under hard loads and the NX cassette is a noticeable weight on the rear wheel. Shimano’s MT501 brakes are lower-tier offerings, and heavy too, but have sorted power and lever feel. The Maxxis Rekon tyres are the dual- (rather than triple) compound version and roll fast, but lack friction on damp surfaces compared to something like a Forekaster, which was also on test. They spin well though, likely due to the freer, cup-and-cone bearings in their Shimano hubs. Scott’s in-house brand Syncros provides the wheels, which are a bit soft when turning hard. One click of the lever increases low-speed compression support at the back, while another opens up the damping at both ends. In the firmest of the three TwinLoc settings it completely locks out, along with the rear shock. Scott has specced the shorter-offset version (44mm) to increase ‘trail’, which acts as a steering stabiliser. Mick KirkmanĪ FIT GRIP-damped Fox 34 fork delivers good traction. A tiny chain-retention device adds extra security to the 1×12 SRAM NX Eagle drivetrain.
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